


SHSL Science

by LaPetiteMorteKitty



Category: Dangan Ronpa, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Reality, Alternate Universe, Blood, Brain Surgery, F/M, Insanity, M/M, Mad Science, Medical Experimentation, Medical Procedures, Medical School, Multi, Organ Transplantation, Science Boyfriends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-09-12
Updated: 2014-02-22
Packaged: 2017-12-26 09:57:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/964615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaPetiteMorteKitty/pseuds/LaPetiteMorteKitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had to be a dream, right? It was weird enough that Hinata'd been taken to an island and told to kill other students, but waking up in a strange laboratory setting really took the cake. Souda said he'd always been there, but recently hit his head and apparently suffered from a case of partial amnesia. Maybe he really belonged at this weird school that focused on scientific advances, working under Souda. He'd started to believe anything was possible. He could handle it, right? With a rather enthusiastic medical engineer Souda, a bored biological chemist Togami, animal surgeon Tanaka, and a seemingly even more insane Komaeda, he started to doubt he could. Whatever was to come... he was sure it wouldn't be good.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Welcome to Science

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers for Souda and Komaeda's free-time events follow

 

**Chapter 1**

 

_‘Hinata-kun….?’_

 

_Wha… wha… Who’s there? What’s going on?_

 

_‘Hinata-kun?!’_

 

_Who’s calling me..?_

 

_‘Hinata-kun, please be okay! I can’t lose a soul friend that easy!’_

 

_S… Souda? Gotta pull myself together…_

 

 

~*~

 

After a few minutes of tossing and turning, the brunette finally came to. “S-souda? Is that you?” He rubbed his head for a minute, taking in his surroundings. It looked like some strange sort of metallic room with linoleum tile floors. It was like a hospital, but a bit more high technical, with key card locked doors, shelves of beakers and test tubes, motion tracking security cameras, and various pieces of machinery, so…. a laboratory? Why would the be in a laboratory? ‘ _This doesn’t make any sense!_ ’

 

“Hey there, buddy. You hit your head pretty hard there~ Luckily we got ya all patched up!” It was, indeed, Kazuichi Souda, standing before him. Something seemed wrong though. He was wearing a long white coat over a yellow t-shirt and brown pants and shoes, and… he had glasses? This was really off. “Somethin’ wrong, Hinata-kun?”

 

“Yeah…. what’s with the glasses?”

 

Souda looked genuinely confused by this. “What do ya mean? I always wear these! Ya don’t want me to be operating without being able to see, do ya?”

 

“Operating? Like… a doctor or something? It’d explain that coat…. but where’s your jumpsuit?” Hinata was clearly confused by all this.

 

“Soul Friend, yer actin’ like you don’t remember! I’m a scientist with major in biology and a specialty in technology, biotechnology, engineering, bioengineering, and biomechanics, and a smidge of neuroscience. I had to look into all these field to get a grasp for what I wanted to do. Hajime Hinata, you are my assistant!” He moved closer and checked Hinata's eyes. “You must’ve hit that head a yours preeeeeeetty hard. You don’t appear to have a concussion, but you may be suffering from amnesia.” He sighed. “Okay, look, you’re at Hope’s Peak Scientific Research and Development Facility and Institute for Young and Gifted Scientists.”

 

Hinata shook his head slightly, trying to clear his thoughts. “Woah! Hope’s Peak what? Like… weren’t we on our way to school at Hope’s Peak Academy when we suddenly got taken to some island?” He was getting more and more confused the more he was told.

 

“Island? The hell are you talkin’ about? We’ve never been to any island before.” Souda seemed frustrated.

 

Hinata was deeply confused, he had already been confused enough when he was taken to an island and told he had to kill his friends to get off of it, but suddenly he’s in some laboratory with Souda spouting some sort of scientific nonsense? It didn’t make any sense! Maybe he was just hallucinating the whole island experience while he was knocked out… or maybe this was the hallucination and he was really in a coma back on the island. “You mean, you’re not a Super High School Level Mechanic?”

 

“Biomechanic is my title, thank you very much. Why the hell would I be into CARS of all things!? They are fine pieces of technology, sure, and a great sign of how far we have come as a species, but the combination of technology and the human body is what I’m into. Man and machine becoming one, such a wonderful thought~” He appeared to be in a state of bliss for a moment before coming back to reality. “Oh yeah, your head…” He sighed and jotted something down on a clipboard. “So ya really got amnesia, eh? Real shame, but I’m sure seeing all your friends and getting back to work will help spark your memory a bit!” He reached to take Hinata’s hand to help him up.

 

Hinata flinched slightly and scooted away. “W-wait! This is all seeming pretty far fetched to me. How do I know that you like, haven’t kidnapped me to wipe my memories or something?”  
  
Souda let out a deep sigh. “Come on, even if you don’t remember me as a scientist, you knew my name, you must have known me somehow in those so called other memories. Is there any reason you wouldn’t trust me?”

 

Hinata took a moment to think about it. Souda didn’t seem to have done anything untrustworthy on the island either… And apparently they were still so-called “Soul Friends” here… So he can’t be th-

 

“Besides, if we wanted to wipe your memory, why would we replace only part of your memory and replace it with such a fantasy? We have a biochemist who specializes in neurology that could fix up some fake memories just like that!” He laughed.

 

Hinata’s heart sunk, but since he wasn’t going anywhere, he figured he might as well listen to the man who claimed to be Souda. “So… what was this about all my ‘friends’?”

 

“Oh right. Well, here.” He helped Hinata to his feet before taking the bandages off his head. “I was actually gonna perform a surgery today with one of my ‘colleagues.’ I use that term loosely because, really, no one really works together all that much unless it’s something important or involves two different areas of expertise. They usually keep to their assistants and that’s it.”

 

Hinata looked over his clothing, not much had seemed to change. He had on a plain white shirt, a tie, black pants, and some brown laceless shoes. He could have sworn he put on sneakers earlier, but considering that he wasn’t sure of anything anymore, it’d make sense that he’d be wearing lab appropriate attire. You could trip over untied shoe laces. He also noted the emblem on his pocket was that of the “Institute,” as Souda had called it. “Alright… take me to them… My friends, I mean.”

 

“Alrighty, Soul Friend!” He put his clipboard at his side and lead him out of the room.

 

Hinata made sure to be observant as he walked. The hallways were all this metallic grey-blue colour, it made everything look so new but everything looked alike, so it would be easy to bump into things if you weren’t looking where you were going. Everything smelled so… sterile. It was so unnatural to him. He wasn’t sure if this was a place he wanted to be.

 

Souda lead him to some swinging doors that read “Neurology Ward and OR” above them. Neurology was dealing with the nervous system, including the brain, right? ‘ _Oh no..._ ’ worried Hinata.

 

Inside, a slightly familiar face was pulling on his latex operating gloves with a slight scowl on his face. He wasn’t very amused.

 

Souda called out to him. “Ey, Togami! Stop being such a spoilsport. Come on, man! It’s not everyday that we get to perform a prefrontal lobotomy!” Souda seemed really excited about this.

 

‘ _Wait… did he say Togami?_ ’ He looked closely as he turned around to see Togami. But he looked… thinner. Much thinner. Did he get liposuction or something? Also, under his lab coat was a green suit… it fit him but it didn’t seem right to him.

 

“Still, we’ve done it before. It’s nothing new.” He looked at Hinata only to turn away with a scowl. It was then that another familiar voice interrupted.

 

“Guuuuuuuuys~! Come on! Just cut my skull open already!”

 

Hinata looked over at the lab table to see a familiar face. “K-Komaeda!?” It was, indeed, Komaeda. He was laying there, a patient's robe under a lab coat he was wearing, and… no pants, just boxers. Hinata blushed at this.

 

“Oh, hello there Hinata-kun~ Nice to see that you’re doing well after your little accident.” Komaeda smiled at him, and it sent a shiver down his spine. After the first murder, he could never feel comfortable around that man.

 

“How many times do I have to tell you, you have to wait until Mikan gets here with the anesthetic so we can put you under. So be patient.”

 

Komaeda scoffed. “Oh, you guys act like you have no faith in your own abilities. I know that you have excellent skills and could perform this procedure, even with me wide awake and without any painkillers or sedatives. You just have to have some hope~!”

 

‘ _Same old Komaeda, spouting his hope nonsense..._ ’

 

“Just… wait…” Souda sighed and turned back to Togami. “You know, he’s been on the other end of the scalpel a lot lately… He’s been a subject more often than he’s operated on anyone…”

 

“It’s probably for the best.” He looked to check the tools they had. “God only knows the havoc a doctor with dementia would wreak on his patients.”

 

Wait… did he just say dementia? Like, an actual medical problem? It’d explain how weird he acts but… dementia? He only had a moment to ponder this before the doors swung open and another person walked over to a cabinet, hands covered in blood.

 

“Oh, look who finally came out of his cave.” Souda remarked smugly.

 

“Silence.” The person was none other than Gundam Tanaka. His outfit was pretty much the same. He wore a white lab coat with a high collar instead of his black one, and had his sleeves rolled up for his long gloves that he wore to operate.He had his usual shirt on and his usual pants and boots, but one thing was a huge difference. He didn’t wear a scarf. He wore… some kind of purple neck warmer. The scarf was probably too long to wear when doing science. He spoke almost coldly. “I do not expect you to understand. I doubt that either of you have ever performed open heart surgery on a Guinea Pig. The small organs are so delicate, I merely came in here to get a smaller pair of forceps. I do not need to converse with any of you.”

 

Komaeda chose to speak up, which Hinata saw as a regretful move. “You could, however, give one of us a chance to learn. Togami has just been itching for something new~”

 

“Shut up, Komaeda…. Do not mention my name in any of your conversations…” Togami turned away.

 

“I do not need your ‘help,’ mortals. All I need is silence and callousness…” He let out an exhale as one of his hamsters nuzzled him. “Silence… and… callousness….” He smiled slightly before pulling the purple surgeon’s mask over his mouth again. “Do not talk to me needlessly again.” He left the room rather quickly.

 

‘Yep… that sure is Tanaka.’

 

“Geeze… what the hell is his problem.” Souda scratched his head. “I’m beginning to think that none of us will ever get along…”

 

Hinata approached Souda. “What was that about dementia, though?”

 

“Oh, right, you don’t remember. Komaeda has a bit of a mental condition. Concurrent frontotemporal dementia. We diagnosed it, among other things, when we started to notice that Komaeda was acting a bit strangely. It’s rather unfortunate and causes many issues like trouble making morally sound decisions, irrational behavior, difficulty regulating mood, attention issues, lack of sympathy for others…. We didn’t see it as too much of an issue since his work hadn’t suffered and he wasn’t hurting anyone. We offered him a potential fix for it and he turned it down… but, seemingly out of nowhere he decided to get the surgery. I still wonder what could have made him pull a 180 like that..." Souda scratched his head with confusion. "Now, we'd be able able to start this if we had the sedatives from Mikan. I'm sure seeing someone's head cut open to reveal that precious grey matter and cerebral cortex tissue will restore your memories! And when we make the incision in the frontal lobe, oh man~" Souda seemed a little too excited about cutting open Komaeda's skull.

 

"Uhhhh... Souda, I'd rather not-" He was cut off by a rather harsh voice.

 

"Excuse me. What is this I am hearing about 'restoring memories?' If you would be so kind to inform me I'd really appreciate it." Togami stood there, glaring to the point that they both cringed. "I have a suspicion I should be concerned with this.”

 

Souda flinched slightly. “Fine, Hinata… kind of has amnesia. He doesn’t remember anything about ever being a scientist’s assistant… I am going to help him along his recovery though, and trying to get him pumped about science like the good ol’ days!”

 

Togami narrowed his eyes. “You’re telling me that you have brought someone without even the slightest clue how to operate into the operating room where we are about to perform a rather delicate procedure.”

 

“EY! He’s my assistant, he doesn’t do the flesh cutting or the bone sawing, he is in training and just helps with the tools I need.”

 

“Right, because you would have to be a complete idiot to let someone like him operate on someone, even with 3 years experience. Why they even allow interns is beyond me. He should just be at a normal high school working on dissecting frogs.” Togami turned on them in disgust. “You and your filthy, greasy mechanical science. Working more with machines than the flesh and organs that we were born with. You could be working in biological engineering and help develop things don't involve shoving metal and wires inside of people. "

 

Hinata held up a finger to speak only to notice Souda fuming with rage. "Wait a minute, you did NOT just insult my scientific progress! You're just jealous that I have actually done somethin' since I got here! And leave Hinata alone! He is skilled, he just can’t remember things right now cause that shelf fell on him! Give us a break ‘ere!” Even with his voice rising and attempt to be strong, Hinata could see his eyes starting to water a little. “We ALL deserve to be here!”

 

Although he was facing away from them, they could tell Togami had a big shit-eating smirk on his face. “You would do best to keep your little assistant out of the way for this procedure and use your remaining years here to do things people actually aren’t afraid of.” He walked over to the sink to make sure all the scalpels were clean.

 

Souda turned his back and walked to the other side of the lab by the door, teeth clenched. Hinata had more than a few things to say, but he felt that he should address what was most important to Souda at this time. “Wait, what was he talking about with your work?”

 

Souda sighed. “Oh, yeah you don’t remember. I’ve been working with the idea of creating mechanical replacements for limbs and organs. The biggest thing is that the mechanical hands would still be able to feel, and that everything would be wired into the nervous system. Got help from our head neurosurgeon on this one. Only thing is that no one wanted to volunteer to be my subject….”

 

“So you never got to test it?” Hinata moved closer to him.

 

“No, I did… just needed some help.” He held up his left arm, showing a scar around his entire wrist. “I guess sometimes you get the most joy out of testing your own experiments. It felt almost weird to have flesh back after I found out it was a success. You were the most supportive that day, but no one seemed to care. Well, except for you and the other person working on the proje-”

 

The doors swung open and Mikan can running in before slipping over the one wet spot in the room, Hinata reacting quickly and grabbing her by the back of her pink nurses uniform and helping her up. “You alright, Mikan?”  
  
“Y-yeah… thanks Hinata-kun. That would have probably ended embarrassingly…. hehehe…” She regained her balance and Souda stepped in.

 

“Ey, Mikan! Did you find the sedatives?” Souda’s mood seemed to lighten with the thought of being able to operate, even if it meant working with Togami.

 

“Oh… right…” She seemed rather upset suddenly. “I… I’m sorry, we are out of sedatives and won’t be getting any for a few days..!” There was an audible, whining ‘awwwwww” from Komaeda and Mikan seemed close to tears.

 

“C-calm down Mikan…! We can operate another day…”

 

“What a waste.” Togami, who’d been testing the electric bone saw, put it down. “I shouldn’t have expected any of you to be competent enough to pull off any of this properly…”

 

Souda scowled at him as Mikan started to tear up again. “We ain’t incompetent, the supplies just ran out. It’s not her fault!”

 

“I suppose I can’t really blame her for it running out, but seeing as she is our medical professional here, she should try to keep out of our supplies stocked so we can avoid things like this happening in the future.” He turned away, scowl still present as he removed his latex gloves.

 

“I… I’m sorry Togami…” She just looked away.

 

“So… we aren’t operating…?” This statement was followed by a yawn and Hinata looked over to see yet another familiar face.

 

“N-Nanami?” He noticed her scratching her head.

 

“Yeah, Nanami is our head neurosurgeon and neurologist. Taught me most of what I know about the nervous system to help me with the mechanical limbs project.”

 

Hinata was still having a difficult time processing what was going on… How was someone who possibly had narcolepsy able to perform brain surgery? Why was Togami acting so much more ass like than usual? Why was Souda so passionate about science and the human body? Did Souda really chop off his own hand to do a test for his own invention? Why was everyone a scientist? Was he going to encounter more people than he already had? And the most important question of all…. WHY THE HELL WAS HE HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE?  
  
“... Hinata-kun?” He jumped. When did Nanami move from the other side of the lab? Oh… he probably was lost in thought when she did it. “Are you okay? You aren’t acting like you usually do, and it worries me.”

 

“O-oh! That. Well…”

 

“Hinata-kun here’s got amnesia. It’s pretty weird.” interrupted Souda, much to Hinata’s dismay.

 

A moment of silence passed before she responded. “Sorry, for a second I was confused as to if you were talking about the medical condition or the horror-puzzle solving game… It is strange. If he has amnesia, why does he remember our names?”

 

“That’s the frickin’ weird part. He has some weird memories of some island that we all were on. I was a mechanic in it. Like for cars instead of technology for the advancement in medical science.” He looked at Hinata. “Since you seem to remember this so-called island so well, what was Nanami-san’s specialty?”

 

“She was a Super High School-Level Gamer.” ‘She still seems to be into video games here though….’

 

“... Well, my ultimate goal at this institute is to gain knowledge that would help me develop a gaming system that links directly to you brain, allowing you a full virtual reality experience… So it almost seems like our talents in that world… are related to our specialties here.” Nanami took a moment to think. “Either way, it would be best to try to re-educate Hinata about his assistant position. It would probably jog his memory.”

 

“Glad to see SOMEONE has my back around ‘ere…” He glared at Togami, who was now talking to a brunette haired girl with long braids in a purple sailor dress that carried a clipboard. For once, Hinata didn’t have a single clue who she was, but she seemed to almost flinch when looked at.

 

Togami gave them one final glare before starting to leave. “Get your supplies in order BEFORE I come down here next time. I don’t want to idly waste my time, especially among the likes of you.” He walked toward the door. “Come on,” commanded Togami before he pushed the swinging doors open.

 

The girl ran to catch up to him before giving her own scowl at the group and muttered to herself. “Filthy scientists pigs, wasting Byakuya-sama’s time…”

 

After she left, Hinata opened his mouth with yet another question. “Okay, who was that?”

 

“Thank god you waited until she left to say that… that one is a little… unstable.” Souda scratched his head nervously. “Touko Fukawa is her name, she’s Togami’s only assistant. She refuses to work with anyone else and Togami seldom ever works with anyone else who isn’t another scientist. She mostly takes notes on his biochemical research… she’s never actually around for the operations. Togami says it’s cause she gets light-headed around blood and gore… I still don’t get how she got into the institute when cutting each other up is kinda what we do around here.” This statement sent shivers down Hinata’s spine. And those shivers only got worse when he heard a voice calling out for him.

 

“Hinata-kun! Can you help me out? If I’m not getting the surgery I kinda would like to be able to move.” The question made Hinata more nervous than usual. Ever since what had happened on the island, or at least what he thought happened.

 

“I’ll get ‘em loose.” Souda walked over and and removed the metallic restraint cuffs from Komaeda and Komaeda started to walk over to the others. “EY! You should get changed, you’re not gonna operated on, so you can put your freaking clothes back on!”

 

“Oh, right.” Komaeda proceeded to remove his lab coat and shirt in front of the others. Hinata covered his eyes at what he saw, but had to uncover them when he noticed all the scars Komaeda had on his body. Souda had said he'd been a test subject a lot lately, but this was excessive. Komaeda just put his normal white shirt with the weird red squiggly pattern, and returned his lab coat before rushing over to Hinata. “Hinata-kun!” He looked so excited but stopped when he noticed Hinata’s confused and slightly scared face. “Hinata-kun? Is something bothering you?”

 

“Uhhh… Komaeda… you’re not wearing any pants…” There were many things that bothered Hinata at this moment, but that was pretty much is top priority.

 

Komaeda looked confused. “I don’t get why that bothers you… I’m just happy to see you again!”

 

“Yeah…. about that….” Hinata tried not to look at the teen and his green gingham boxers.

 

“Uh… Komaeda…. my assistant here… remember how that shelf fell on his head? He has amnesia… He doesn’t remember a thing that he did here, he doesn’t even remember being a scientist assistant. He remembers most of our names, but he has scrambled information. He actually thought I was a CAR MECHANIC, of all things.”

 

Komaeda looked really disappointed. ‘ _Oh god, what did I do_?’ worried Hinata. He wasn’t sure exactly if he should be scared, but Komaeda managed to turn that frown upside down fairly easily.

 

“That’s rather unfortunate, Hinata-kun. However, I have hope that with time, you will recover your lost memories and be able to enjoy yourself. You just need to have hope, too. Hope can overcome everything!” He flashed Hinata a cheerful, endearing smile.

 

That smile made Hinata uncomfortable. There was no way that any of this could be good...

 


	2. 21st Century Cure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a good night sleep, Hinata still hadn't recovered his memories. Something seemed fishy, though. People around here were acting suspicious, and not too many people were going to be helpful. He figures he best get as much information as he can regarding the school and his condition. However, he isn't quite sure who to trust. Most people seem friendly enough, others not so much, and a few... too friendly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait for this to come out. THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL NOT TAKE 4 MONTHS.
> 
> Bonus points if you can find the references to Portal in here or where the title came from (although the title referece will probably be on the tumblr post for this).

Chapter 2

 

Hinata spent his “first night” in his dorm at the “school.” He wasn't sure he could even call it that, considering he'd apparently had the same room for just over a year. He couldn't feel like it was his room. He was waiting for that strange feeling of "maybe I've been here before," but that never came to him. At least his messy memories were also the concern of the others this time… although being the only one who didn’t remember bothered him.

 

After showering, getting dressed, and looking around the room for anything that could jog his memory, Hinata departed from his room to find breakfast. It took a while to navigate to the cafeteria. Why the halls were that twisted was beyond Hinata’s comprehension. Perhaps it was just the large amount of shelves in the hallways, but it was convoluted. With conditions like  these, it was no wonder he hit his head. If that was even what really happened. The first trial on the island left him weary, especially of Komaeda.

 

Hinata pushed open the double doors and looked about. ‘ _For such a large cafeteria, there certainly are few students… I suppose it makes sense, since not everyone is a super intelligent scientist. Although, didn’t Togami say something about me being an intern?_ ’ He wasn't able to ponder that for very long, though, before his thoughts were interrupted by a shout from halfway across the room.

 

“Soul friend!” It was Souda. “Guess ya decided to sleep in a bit, eh?” Hinata looked at the clock. It was about an hour later than when he was used to waking up back on the island. He’d had some trouble sleeping, so this wasn’t the most abnormal thing he could have done. “It’s alright. Just wanted to see if any of those memories ya lost came back.”

 

Hinata sighed. “No, sleeping didn’t do anything for my memory. If it had it’d be a miracle.” As he scratched his head, a slight growl was heard. It was his stomach. He hadn’t eaten in a while due to the whole “being unconscious” thing from the day before.

 

“I knew you’d be hungry. Got ya some food, it’s sitting on the table over there.” Souda gestured with a thumb over his shoulder. “I gotta run. A friend is coming in to discuss potential body modification, so I best not be late! See you soon, Hinata-chan!” And before all of that registered with Hinata, Souda was gone. Hinata figured he’d probably gone to his lab and just sat down to eat.

 

As Hinata ate, he couldn’t help but notice that it seemed like almost no one actually ate together. There were maybe 1 or 2 people to a table, and considering the class sizes, there probably shouldn’t have been more than 2 tables anyway. People were either with their assistants or sat alone. He could only guess from this and how they behaved yesterday that most people didn’t get along with each other. He couldn’t put more thought into this, however. His thoughts were all in an attempt to avoid the elephant in the room. He looked across the table and finally spoke up. “Morning, Komaeda.” He was wary of Komaeda more than anyone.

 

“O-oh, Hinata-kun. I’m glad you noticed me. You seemed deep in thought and I didn’t want to interrupt.” A nervous chuckled passed through the lips of the slightly taller man. “I just wanted to see how you were. It’s only natural that I’d be concerned about you.” Komaeda smiled sweetly at Hinata. “It is rather terrible that this happened to you, but you just have to have hope that the problem will resolve itself--” Hinata took a break from eating and held up a finger to quiet Komaeda. “Is something wrong, Hinata-kun?”

 

“Komaeda… I could have sworn this was brought up yesterday, but, where are your pants?” Hinata’s eye and ahoge twitched slightly with a faint irritated blush reddening his cheeks at this. “I mean, you’re walking around with a whole bunch of people around, and I’m pretty sure that being seen in underwear is actually something most people dread. Considering this seems to be a very private school, especially one that often uses dangerous chemicals, you’d think there’d be a dress code saying that the students should wear pants…” Hinata would admit that he, personally, found this a ‘distraction’ and that Komaeda probably should have gotten in trouble by now, but then again, he hadn’t seen an actual teacher yet. He should probably ask Souda about that.

 

“Oh, Hinata-kun, it’s nice of you to be looking out for people like me, but shouldn’t you be more concerned with your memories at the moment?” A small frown was visible on the white haired man's face. As per usual, Komaeda seemed to hold less value to himself compared to others

 

“I suppose you’re right, Komaeda…” He quietly took a bite of food. ‘ _I feel like a huge chunk of my life is missing for the second time in the last week._ ’ “Guess we can only see if it’ll come back to me as I do my work.” Hinata cocked an eyebrow at the other man. “Shouldn’t you be going to take care of what you have to do for the day if you’re done eating?”

 

“Oh, right.” More uneasy laughter. “I don’t have that much to do, really. Considering that the pain killers and anesthetic are still in low supply, along with the anesthesia, It’s not ‘safe’ to operate. At least according to those like Souda and Togami. It would be so much more exciting and enjoyable if we just trusted our own skills. We have the most skilled teenage scientists and surgeons in the country here! They are geniuses, and with a little hope, anything is possible.” He sighed slightly before making eye contact with Hinata again. “Well, I am probably not helping you by slowing your eating like this. I do hope you recover your memory soon. Best of luck!” With a wink and a wave, Komaeda left the table and the lunch room.

 

Hinata just sat there. ‘ _Why the hell can’t he just put on some fucking pants..._ ’ Hinata shook his head and returned to his food. Souda was probably going to want his help soon. After finishing his meal, he set out to meet up with his “mentor”, only to realize after standing up the he didn’t remember where Souda’s lab was. "Shit, maybe I should have waited before sending Komaeda away..."

 

He scanned the room looking for someone willing to help. His eyes locked with Tanaka's, but the look he received made him uneasy. He saw Togami, but his lack of response and the subsequent glare from Fukawa warned him not to even bother with Togami. He had to find someone less intimidating to ask. Sitting at the table Komaeda was at before Hinata had sat down, was Mikan. ‘ _Much better. Just gotta handle this calmly._ ’ Hinata sauntered over to the nervous nurse, a little tense himself. “H-hey Tsumiki. Are you busy?”

 

She looked up at Hinata. “N-no I’m not. Why do you ask, Hinata-kun?” She gulped, a bit nervous as usual.

 

“Well, with this whole amnesia thing, I don’t quite… remember where Souda’s lab is. I almost got lost just trying to find my way here.” He scratched his head. “So, I was wondering if you could show me the way there this once, if it’s not any trouble.”

 

Mikan jumped up. “O-oh course it’s not a probl-aHHH!” Her shoes slipped on some of the clean linoleum floor under the table and she fell back onto the table’s bench. “S-sorry, Hinata-kun…” She started sniffling slightly.

 

“N-no! Don’t be upset! Just get up a little slower and calm down.” Hinata let out a deep sigh. “Shall we go?”

 

“Y-yeah. Sorry about that.” Mikan let out a nervous giggle and slowly got to her feet, making sure not to slip again. She started to lead the way down the tight corridors.

 

Hinata could tell from the path that they were taking that he probably never would have found his way. But the quiet of the halls allowed him time to think. He still couldn’t find logic in how his memory loss had occurred, since he couldn’t see a shelf falling on him making his memory this scrambled. He decided that Mikan would be one of the best people to talk to about this situation. “Hey. Tsumiki-san. You’re pretty much the only fully licenced medical student here. What do you think of my whole amnesia problem? I figure you’d know a lot about this kind of thing.”

 

She thought for a moment, twiddling her thumbs. “Well, I’ve never heard of something like this happening before. It’s… strange, to say the least. Usually people with amnesia don’t remember anything, or at least have lost the ability to make new memories from a certain point. It’s extremely peculiar that you have filled in the memories with things that never happened. I don’t quite know how it’s possible or what triggered this, but it surely is the first time.” She only got deeper in her thoughts although she sounded a tiny bit cheerful. “I do know we have the ability to replace memories but, considering we can control what memories can be replaced, and what they will be replaced with, that doesn’t match up with with what’s wrong with you….” Her fingers intertwined. “You’d think that Togami would have called you in to get examined by now, since he is one of our master neuroscientists who specializes in how the brain works, but then again, he doesn’t really get along with most of us…” She cut herself off, slightly panicking. . “S-sorry Hinata-kun, I’m not helping you at all!”

 

Hinata held a finger to her mouth before she could start crying. “Hey, calm down. You are helping me, I just wanted to know what you thought, and this may help in the future. Just… relax.”

 

She took a deep breath. “T-thanks… Hinata-kun.” She stopped in front of a set of double doors. “Here’s Souda-kun’s lab, I think he had a meeting scheduled with one of his friends, so you should try to be careful not to interrupt. He always has that wrench and screwdriver with him, I’d hate to see what Souda-kun is like when he’s mad…”

 

“Thanks.” He turned to the door, only halting his movements when he remembered something. “Hey, just one more question. I notice that some people seem to have assistants and some don’t… Does Komaeda have one?”

 

“Oh, Komaeda-kun is kind of a special case… sometimes he has this one intern who goes by Makoto Naegi working with him, but he goes between working with him and with Kirigiri-san. Komaeda usually works alone, though… especially lately.”

 

“Okay, thank you. I’ve never heard of either of those two, but I welcome the information. See you later, Tsumiki!” Hinata waved and turned back to the door, pushing them open and stepping inside. He was quickly graced with the sight of another familiar face. “Ibuki?!”

 

Souda was standing next to Ibuki, who had taken a seat on a flat lying lab table. “Yoooooooo! Hajime-chan’s here! I heard ya had some sort of incident with falling for yourself! Ibuki didn’t think that Hajime-chan was that vain.”

 

“Ibuki, I told you that Hinata had a shelf fall on him, not that he had himself fall for him.” He sighed and adjusted his glasses. “Either way, great to see you Hinata-kun, I was just discussing potential body modification surgery, it’ll be a blast!”

 

Hinata blinked. “Wait, what now?” Souda’s reactions to any kind of surgery were still a bit too excited for his tastes.

 

“Ibuki’s going to get REAL Oni horns. Kazuichi-chan said that he could get Ibuki horns on her head so that she could stop having to deal with this extreme hairstyle each day. They aren’t going to be metal, either. Well, Ibuki means that they will be metal in style, but be made out of Ibuki’s actual flesh and bone!”

 

“Yes, it will take a few days before I can do it, though, Ibuki, so, look over that contract I gave you so you understand what you’re getting into.”

 

“Okay Kazuichi-chan! See you soon! You too Hajime-chan, if you get your memories together and stop making out with yourself in the mirror!” She hopped down and walked out of the lab, not giving Hinata a chance to respond.

 

"That girl.... Anyway. Hey, Hinata-kun! How was breakfast? We don’t really have much to do so maybe look around and try to jog your memory.” Souda sat down in his swivel chair and scooted his way across the room to his desk, seeming a little concerned with something. “Now… how am I gonna do this…”

 

Hinata just sort of stared as Souda looked through file after file, before moving to look around the lab. As expected, there were many machine parts strewn across the floor, scattered on the tables and littering the desks. Although there did appear to be some sort of system to what was in each pile, it still wasn’t the neatest. Nevertheless, Hinata looked around, spotting the large computer he had along with various sharp operating tools and some body parts floating in jars. “Ick… disgusting…” muttered Hinata. He then moved to a shorter shelf, noticing a photograph above it. This photograph showed him standing by Souda as Souda held up a gold medal of some kind, Komaeda standing pretty near to him, while Togami held up a silver medal with Fukawa, and Gundam stood with Sonia. “W-wait, Sonia’s Gundam assistant?”

 

“Oh yeah, perhaps I should say she _was_ his partner. A transfer student who came here on invitation. She was really pretty, and nice too. She and Gundam were inseparable. I really don’t know what practical applications studying ectobiology had, but she was something. Tanaka seemed really sad when she had to return to her home country, though. He refused to work with anyone else. I did try, when she first got here, to get her as my assistant, but you can tell that didn’t work out. Really, if she’d had said yes you’d probably be working with Komaeda right now, but I’m glad yer my assistant. I really don’t think winning that award would have been possible without you helping me get my hand off and the prosthetic on.” Souda let himself get lost in happy science thoughts about his technological advances.

 

“Oh, that’s what this picture is of.” Hinata said, lifting it up to look at it better. “How does this contest work? Does it determine your grades or something?”

 

“Oh, well, it’s kinda like this. It doesn't have to do with grades, really, but we spend all year researching something that will help people or advance scientific knowledge. This determines future project funding and such. I managed to get top prize last year with my artificial limbs. Of course, I beat Togami, so he’s been a bug up my ass since we started our projects for this year, although I don’t think I can top last years work…” He sighed and put down his files. “The hell did I get myself into? I don’t have the knowledge to give Ibuki those horns, that would be something Tanaka would do.”

 

“Well… couldn’t you ask Tanaka for help?” inquired Hinata. He knew he was stepping into risky territory from what he’d seen on the Island.

 

“Oh, no man, no. I told ya, he works alone. All the ‘silence and callousness’ business, you know?” His fingers toyed with the pencil on his desk, rolling it around slightly. “He ain’t gonna help me out no matter how much I ask. I can’t let Ibuki down though!” He lay his head down on the desk and let out a long groan. “Damn….”

 

Hinata could tell that Souda was clearly frustrated. And it wasn’t like Gundam was just going to burst through the door and help out Souda. “You can’t give up now, Souda. You’ll find a way. I know you will.”

 

Souda lifted his head up. “I suppose you’re right, I can’t lose hope yet. Something’s bound to happen to make this work out.”

 

And almost as if on queue, the doors swung open violently. “Mortal! I require to speak with you at once!” The man with his custom purple doctor’s mask shouted.

 

Souda had to contain himself, he couldn’t be too upfront with what he needed to ask. "Yes, Tanaka? This is very unlike you. I could have sworn that you said that you wouldn’t dare set foot in such a vile dwelling even if it meant life and death..."

 

"Disregard those statements, they were made in a time when I was unaware that your services would be of use to me. I extend my most sincere apologies." Gundam seemed a bit frantic.

 

"Hmmm, tell me what ya need me for, Hamster-chan. I don't have all day." Hinata could tell that Souda still didn't like Gundam, even if he was in need of help.

 

Gundam straightened his posture and cleared his throat. "I wish to form an alliance with you to develop mechanical limbs for animals. It has come to my attention that you are the only one that has this knowledge, thus it would be in our best interest to form a contract for this assignment." Tanaka pulled his operating mask up.

 

"Well, yer in luck. I have this appointment in a few days, which involves creating horns on the head of a human, and they can't be mechanical. So I'm at a loss. But I think we can put our differences aside, for science, you monster~" Souda's tongue darted out and glossed over his lips, an almost sadistic smirk crossing his face as he got closer to Gundam.

 

The biologist stepped back and let out a low grunt. "Of course you would handle this in such a manner, but considering that time is of the essence, I must, reluctantly, accept your terms. However, my own terms must also be met." Pulling his mask above his nose, he spoke. "These procedures are sure to require the utmost precision and an advanced level of skill. I would prefer if it were just the two of us operating. As such, I have made the necessary provisions and found a position for your assistant where he will be safe given his current skills."

 

Although he zoned out a little, Hinata could tell that Gundam was talking about him. "Woah! Wait up there! Who gives you the right to transfer someone else's assistant?" Hinata did have to admit that Souda seemed more sane and nice than most of the people here. He wasn't sure that he wanted to leave.

 

Souda sighed. "Well, I see his point, Hinata-chan. Your whole memory situation does have its risks when trying new things like this. I don't wanna see ya go, but it'll only be temporary."

 

Before Hinata could speak up again, Gundam chimed in. "I am glad you agree with me. This experience might not be as insufferable as I first believed. I will escort your assistant to his temporary position." Without another word, he turned away and walked out the door, expecting Hinata to follow.

 

Hinata gave a glare in Souda's direction, but Souda could only return a nervous shrug as his assistant walked away. He didn't have a good feeling about this transfer, but at least as soon as Souda finished his work he’d be back.

 

They stopped at another door set far away from Souda's lab. "I sent the request in earlier, so they should be expecting you. I bid you the best of luck." Tanaka turned away, leaving Hinata to meet up with his new mentor alone.

 

Hinata exhaled before looking around the door. The name was marked next to the door: Togami’s lab. ' _Dammit Tanaka… How was this even a remotely good idea?'_  Considering that Hinata still didn’t get the hang of how the floors were arranged, he could only proceed into the lab and hope for the best with Togami. He entered the swinging doors and looked around, noticing that the lab was in a relatively neat state compared to Souda’s lab. “H-hello?”

 

“Oh, so he was actually serious about this.” A stern voice greeted Hinata as he noticed Togami sitting at a desk covered in beakers and test tubes, filled with various liquids and chemicals. “I really thought that that shut-in was joking around, but here you are.” Togami’s tone never left this level of condescension. “I suppose I can’t turn you away now, but I really don’t know what you’d expect to do to help me. I already have one assistant and she is currently working in the back room.”

 

Hinata tried to avoid eye contact. “Well, I didn’t ASK to be transferred, it kind of just… happened. One second I’m helping out Sodua, and the next, I’m walking down the hall to your lab.” Hinata started looking around, seeing tons of books on the working of the human brain and nervous system. It was obvious what areas that Togami specialized in, and it was then that he saw the thick metal door in the back and reached for the handle.

 

“Whatever…” Togami looked over and saw the brunette reaching for the door. “No, you do NOT go in there.” He got up and made sure the door was locked. “Only those with my authorization are to go in there, you are not my actual assistant, so you cannot enter. Understand?” His town seemed to get more tense and condescending by the minute. “Find something else to look at.”

 

Hinata was taken a bit aback at the reaction that Togami had to him just trying to open a door. He couldn’t tell if Togami had something to hide or just didn’t like him. Maybe it was both? All he could tell was that Togami was agitated. “Okay… okay… I won’t go into your back room.” Hinata just backed away, but ended up knocking over a cart with some books on it. “Uh… sorry?”

 

Togami rubbed his temples. “Just… sit down and don’t touch anything, PLEASE. I’ll figure out something for you to do that you won’t wreck...” Hinata walked away from him, sitting on a stool in the corner, hearing Togami muttering as he picked up the books. “You’re not a doctor, you’re not a scientist, you’re not even a full time employee, where did your life go so wrong…”

 

Hinata just sat there for a while, not able to reach any of the textbooks surrounding most of the room from where he sat. Occasionally, he would try to strike up a conversation with Togami, only to be silenced quickly while he looked over papers and mixed chemicals. It wasn’t a very fun or enlightening experience, and it wasn’t helping him get back his memory at all.

 

After a while, Togami let out a sigh filled with resentment and turned back to Hinata. “Look, I’m a bit tense because I’m trying to make sure that we pass the safety inspection. The inspector will be here sometime in the afternoon. I need to get this done and I do not need any more help than I already have. How about I get you to someone who actually could use an assistant?”

 

At this point, anything seemed like an improvement to his current circumstances. “If you think it would be better, then sure. Take me to them.” Hinata stood up and he was lead out of the room by Togami. Again, he tried to talk to him but was met with silence. He couldn’t help but feel like Togami seemed to have some sort of personal hang up with him. He showed no sympathy when he learned that Hinata had lost his memories and was the quickest to say he should be discharged from service. Admittedly, Souda did say that Togami was bitter about the contest, and Souda also said that if it wasn’t for him, he probably couldn’t have pulled off the operation… It was highly likely that Togami could have a vendetta with him.

 

Togami then stopped at an unmarked lab, but it had a certain air about it. “Wait out here for a second.” He walked into the lab, which seemed a little dark, and didn’t come out for a bit. He must have been talking to whomever was in the room to see if he could stay. It was… unnerving, to say the least. But Togami did, in fact, come out again. “Alright, go in, good luck~” It was the happiest that Togami had been all day, but he wore a slight smirk that unnerved the hell out of Hinata.

 

Hinata took a cautious step into the lab. The lights were a bit dimmer than in the other labs, and it almost seemed completely deserted. “Hello?” He stepped inside, just in time for someone in the nearest swivel chair to scoot by. “Komaeda?!”

 

“Oh, hey Hinata-kun! I heard you needed someone to help since Souda-kun was busy and Togami had work to do. It’s awfully nice of you to come visit me, although I did say I didn’t have much work to really do. It’s just nice to be around people sometimes.” His face wore a sincere smile. Hinata had received the same expression from Komaeda the day before and he still didn’t trust it.

 

Hinata scratched his head. “Yeah… everyone seems to be up in arms about their work and this safety inspector. I didn’t know you actually had to have a safety inspection.” Hinata looked around and the lab was a bit too clean for his taste. Except for a part in the lab that had a burned out light, it seemed that everything was in order. It smelled… really sterile. It had just occurred to Hinata that he never asked Komaeda what his specialty was, but he was caught off guard when he finally looked at Komaeda again. “... Komaeda why can’t you just put some pants on…”

 

Komaeda chuckled a bit, hopping out of his chair after kicking himself all the way across the room. “Oh Hinata-kun~ you’re always so worried about me, but well, I’m not doing anything dangerous right now, and this is my own lab. So I really don’t see why it’s a problem right now. You really should be more concerned with yourself though.”

 

Hinata looked over a picture on Komaeda’s desk of him, Komaeda, and Souda grinning and laughing. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right. Although, you seem to be the only person really that concerned about it.” Hinata couldn’t help but feeling unnerved by the surroundings. It was too… quiet. Too empty.

 

“Oh, well, Hinata, you have some great talent, even for someone who’s only an intern here. I only want to help you the best I can.” There were faint footsteps. “It’s really terrible that this had to happen to you.”

 

Hinata put the picture back down. “Yeah, I still don’t know how this happened… But thanks Komaeda, I really appreciate your conce--” There was a pinch at the back of Hinata’s neck and he started to feel weak and dizzy… “What… the hell…?” He tried to use the table for support, but it was useless. He collapsed, only being able to see a pair of brown, double zipper shoes, with no socks, standing there. “Ko….maeda?”

 

“I’m only trying to help, Hinata-kun.” responded the snowy haired scientist. “Relax, everything I’m doing is to help you.”

 

Hinata tried reach out towards him, maybe to pull him down or pull himself up, but his arm fell flat against the tiled floor. “Damn…” His vision was failing. He could hear an insane chuckle as he let his eyelids fall. ' _Dammit Komaeda…_ ' thought Hinata. He lost consciousness. The last thing he could hear was Komaeda’s haunting laughter, fading out as his body drifted into an artificial sleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanna thank my friends Jayy (Tumblr user palinc) and Forrest (tumblr user jake--from-state-farm) for beta reading this, it means a lot to me


	3. Vena Cava

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Souda and Gundam begin work on their team project, attempting to warm up to each other a bit, but Souda is more concerned with what happened to Hinata. Hinata, on the other hand, awakes to find out what Komaeda is capable of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be expecting feed back from you guys for this one. I am tempted to mark the fic with a violence warning for this chapter, however, I think just a gore warning would be more applicable.
> 
> So yeah, GORE AHEAD.
> 
> Title is a reference to the song Vena Cava by Angelspit. It's a bit obscure so I wasn't going to have anyone guess it.

**Chapter 3**

 

Souda sat there, watching a hamster run in its wheel as he drew diagrams and took notes. It was his job to design the animals’ limbs and make sure they functioned properly, so he’d have to observe animals to do so. Seeing how things moved and how joints would bend interested him.

 

Gundam stood off to the side, ensuring that the hamster was content with what it was doing as Souda took his notes. As he finished writing, Souda instructed Gundam to have the hamster climb and stretch so he could get a few sketches.

 

Things were relatively silent for a while, until Souda spoke up. He felt awkward about doing so, but this near-silent lab procedure was out of the norm from what he’d established with Hinata. “So, Tanaka… It’s pretty weird to see you out and about. I know ya wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for this project, but why don’t ya try to socialize more?” He might as well try to talk to him while he was here.

 

Gundam sighed. “I am not what you mortals would consider a ‘people person.’ They would always refer to me by such things as, ‘that weird kid with the animals.’ I thought that gaining entrance into this academy could, perchance, give me a second opportunity to establish a better self image among fellow scientists. My expectations were set too high.” He looked at the hamster as it sat in his hands, patting its head before noticing Souda giving him a look of mild confusion. “You must surely jest. Considering your off-hand remarks about my seclusion, you should know the exact behavior I am remarking upon. It is only made worse by Togami’s comments about how useless my interests are…”

 

Souda frowned a bit. “Hey man, look, I’m sorry about teasin’ ya. I didn’t have the best life before comin’ here either.” He sighed, shoving his memories to the back of his head. “But at least we can agree that Togami is an ass.”

 

Gundam nodded. “Agreed.”

 

Souda continued with his sketches as silence fell again. “... I guess this explains why you sent Hinata away.”

 

A slight growl was heard. “Cease with the pointless commentary at once.” Gundam just scratched the head of his hamster, cutting off the conversation for another few minutes. But this time, after around 10 minutes of near-silent sketching, Gundam spoke up. “May I inquire upon something?”

 

“Sure, shoot.” Souda sat down, intently doodling prototype designs for the bionic hamster leg.

 

“Admittedly, I am… without knowledge of a great many things regarding the operation of this institute. Something has piqued my interest as of last year.”

 

Souda looked up from his notes. “Yeah? What? Spit it out man!”

 

“Well, I am a bit curious. I have heard nothing about the specialty of the hopeful one. I fail to recall him… even entering a project at the end of last year. This is perplexing to me.”

 

Souda flipped the page and kept doodling. “Oh, that. It probably doesn't help people when he just lets us experiment on him constantly. But, I found this out since Hinata and I were always close to him. He’s into cardiology. You know, the heart and circulatory system. I asked him his motivation but ended up listening to one of his speeches about hope as a result. He somehow has linked hope and the heart together even though literally all emotions are just chemical reactions in our lil’ heads. I just try to ignore him when he gets like that.” He flipped the page in his notepad, looking rather excited. “Guess t’was for the best that he stopped operating. I wouldn’t trust the judgement of someone with frontotemporal dementia when it comes my vital organs, I tell you what!”

 

“Oh, I suppose that would explain why he suddenly stopped operating. The slightest lapse in judgement could result in someone losing their life….”

 

“Yeah, I guess it would.  But I really wonder what made him decide that he wanted to get the surgery for his dementia. He was set in not needin’ it for a good few weeks…” More notepad flipping. “But, since I answered your question, how about ya answer mine. Where did you take Hinata-chan?”

 

~*~

 

Vision was finally returning to Hinata. The surroundings were moderately dark, his head was pounding, and his vision still blurry. ‘ _Fucking hell… what happened to me?_ ’ In an attempt to get as far away from this situation as possible, he tried to move his legs. They couldn’t move. The same could be said for his arms. ‘ _Okay Hinata… you have to remain calm. What happened before I blacked out? Gundam sent me to Togami, and Togami brought me too..._ ’ “KOMAEDA!” That was right. The last thing he remembered was Komaeda rolling around, without pants, on a swivel chair. He was starting to see that it was pointless to argue about the amount of clothing Komaeda wore. Maybe he was just trying to distract from his real plan? It wasn’t necessary, though. Hinata was just looking at a picture on the desk. He shouldn’t have turned his back on Komaeda… That was where he made his mistake.

 

His vision was finally clearing up and he looked to see why he couldn’t move. He was strapped down to a lab table. He could only guess that this also accounted for why his legs couldn’t move. On the inside of his left elbow was an IV supplying him with some sort of combination of liquids. They weren’t to keep him asleep, though. He took a whiff of the air that filled the room. It was still sterile, excluding a pungent coppery smell coming from nearby. “What the…?” It was then that Hinata finally lifted his head. Blood was staining the table he was strapped down to, it staining the teal tarp that was covering Hinata. Wait? Teal tarp? Hinata was now aware of the lack of sleeves, or for that matter, any upper body clothing.

 

Pain stung Hinata in his chest, causing his head to swing back towards the metallic table with a thud. “AHHHHHHHHH!” Whatever was in that needle that Komaeda had used earlier was wearing off. But… why did it hurt so bad? What was done to him? Sure to regret the decision, Hinata lifted his heavy head, the throbbing in his brain increasing to insane levels. He had to see what Komaeda did.

 

The sight Hinata saw was sure to stick with him forever. It became obvious what was causing the pounding in his head. Instead of being treated with the sight of his chest or a blank teal tarp, he was met with the sight of his heart, in the middle of his chest, which was cut up as if he were a frog on a dissection tray, being held open by some kind of scissor shaped clamps. If it weren’t for the fact that he was looking at it right now, he’d have sworn his heart stopped beating. “AHHHHHHHHH!” Another scream. Hinata almost bit his tongue just to stop. ‘ _Why? Why do this?_ ’

 

“I’m glad to see you finally awake, Hinata-kun.” That voice. That cursed honeyed voice that constantly sounded like it was trying to lull him to sleep. That voice that was the last thing he heard before his body collapsed to the ground in a none too graceful manner. That voice...

 

"What the... hell, Komaeda...!?" The raspy, forced response was barely possible after the extensive screaming.

 

As if completely ignoring him, the snowy-haired individual pulled his operating mask over his mouth. “It really is wonderful that you regained consciousness. I was worried that I’d given you too large of a dose and you’d be out at least until the heart and lung machine was hooked up, and by that point, you wouldn’t be able to speak so much as a word.” Sauntering over to the desk, he started going through supplies. Fresh shiny scalpels fresh from the package, small medical scissors, forceps, all brand new, causing Komaeda great joy as a scientist. “Oh man, was I lucky that Togami chose to leave you here with me. If he hadn’t, all that thought and planning would have been wasted.” A chuckle.

 

‘ _He’s happy about doing this?_ ’ Hinata grunted and tugged at the restraints. They weren’t going to give any time soon. “Komaed-AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!” Another scream the moment he opened his mouth. The pain was unbearable. He had to keep his mouth shut unless he absolutely needed to talk.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did you say something earlier? I was so caught up in my preparations.” Even with the mask covering his mouth and nose, it was obvious that he was smiling. There was the distinct snap of elastic. His now gloved hands carefully opened the packaging of all the shiny new tools, as to make sure he didn’t puncture the gloves and have to get another pair or a band-aid. “I apologize for that, but considering how delicate this procedure is, even without the few exceptions to the process I made, I’d hate for something to go wrong and have it result in some sort of complication. I hope you understand.” Concern showed on his face for about 30 seconds until he turned back and pulled out keys to a storage room, pulling out some sort of machine on wheels that had multiple tubes, pumps, switches, and displays. He carted it next to Hinata. “Okay, I can listen now.”

 

“D-dammit Ko… ah… maeda…” His throat hurt. He couldn’t scream anymore. “What are you… ahhhhhh… trying to do..?” Staggered breathing, weakness from the amount of blood he’d lost already.

 

“Simple, really. I’m a cardiatric surgeon, fully certified, and I’m performing some surgery on you.” Hinata attempted to open his mouth again to ask about the surgery, but Komaeda could guess what he’d say. “Oh, the kind? Just a little heart transplant, just like we used to do all the time together. Just the sort of thing to kick start your memories.”

 

“T-transplant?!” choked out Hinata. “What does my h-heart have to do… with my memories…?”

 

“You ask too many questions, Hinata-kun. You should conserve your strength. The immunosuppressives are already in your system and you are weak. I want you to be able to observe the process of a heart transplant first-hand. Admittedly, the hardest part for me, out of all this, was when I had to remove your shirt, sterilize your body and then cut open that breastbone of yours.” He lifted up a bloodied bonesaw. How anyone trusted him with that sort of tool was beyond Hinata’s comprehension, and the very sight of it .

 

“You… bathed me? Gross…” Hinata knew that that should be the least of his worries, but he would guess that this would explain how he ended up without a shirt or coat.

 

“Oh, I wouldn’t say bathed. I just needed to make sure that your skin was clean where I made the incision.” He once again was off to get more supplies. He opened a fridge. “Type A… Type A… Ahh! There it is.” He pulled out a bag of blood from cold storage, returning to the table, hanging it from one of many hooks, and feeding it into the machine. “I’ve always been so fascinated with the heart. It’s such a powerful organ, so full of hope. It’s pretty much the powerhouse of our entire beings. Without a heart, there would be no blood pumping to our vital organs, our brain would cease to function, our blood would clot: We would die.” He twirled a scalpel between his fingers methodically. “The heart means so much. It’s a symbol of love, a symbol of caring, a symbol of _hope_. I’ve always felt that you have a great amount of hope sleeping in your heart, Hinata-kun.”

 

“But aren’t… memories… and feelings… aaaahhhh… such as hope… just chemical reactions in our heads..?”

 

“Oh, you remind me so much of Nanami-san when you say that. Always so serious… So literal. If only I was a neurosurgeon like her, I would then feel comfortable looking in on that brain of yours. I’ve actually wondered if someone could use the electrical currents in the brain like a battery, but that isn’t my specialty. Sometimes, I even wish I’d gone into studying the gastrointestinal system. Imagine, Hinata-kun, sitting in a chair, your abdomen sliced open, your intestines sprawled out before you. You have 25 feet of intestines inside of you, Hinata. All that viscera splayed out before you. It would be a perfect position for you to _spill your guts_ about things.”

 

“A pun…? Really…?” Hinata was losing patience with Komaeda and was probably close to losing consciousness again.

 

“But alas, I am but a cardiologist. However, my work is a delicate art, so I can only ask that you do not lose hope in my abilities. I have done my research, found you a suitable replacement heart among the many specimen donated for science. As for your old heart, well, I am pretty good when it comes to preserving specimen too. I’ll keep it in a happy little jar on my desk for us to always look back at and laugh about once you’ve recovered and have your memories back.” He shot a smile at Hinata, although it was hidden behind his mask.

 

“K… komaeda… n-no…” He pulled at the restraints, but his strength had all but left him. “Stop it… now…”

 

He lifted up the scalpel and one of the tubes. “Relax now, Hinata-kun. You are putting more stress on your heart by panicking like this. Now this machine will take over your lung function so you won’t really be able to speak after I do this. I promise I’ll do this the quickest and best I ca-”

 

Hinata stared in shock and awe as Komaeda collapsed before him, and standing directly behind him was Souda, panting and brandishing his trusty wrench. “Soul Friend… I knew somethin’ was gonna go wrong when Tanaka took you away from me… I just knew it…”

 

“Souda… I have never been… this happy to see you…”

 

“It’s okay, save your strength, Hinata-chan. I’m gonna get you patched up without any more pain, and we’ll take care of this joker. Just hold on!” Souda pulled out a syringe, injecting it into Hinata’s arm. He was quick to return to the blissful state of unconsciousness. This time, not to the sound of Komaeda’s laughter.

 

~*~

 

Hinata regained consciousness another hour or two later. He looked around; there was no sight of Komaeda, but Souda jumped up the moment he noticed he was awake. “Good, you woke up. I cleaned all the crap out of your blood and stitched up your chest. You will need to be a lil’ careful. Although the mixture of steroids and immunosuppressants kept you alive, it does mean that you might be more susceptible to diseases. Also, if you aren’t careful, you could tear a stitch.”

 

Sure enough, when Hinata looked down, he had a set of stitches where his heart rested. “Thanks Souda, I really appreciate it...” It was difficult for him to believe that that entire ordeal was real, but the proof was right there on his chest. ‘ _Dammit Komaeda… I thought I could trust you… In this world… in this timeline… whatever this is… I thought I could trust you..! Fuck..._ ’ His gaze returned to Souda. “Can I have some clothes for my upper body, please?”

 

“Oh, right.” Souda ran out of the room to get him a set of his shirt, tie, and lab coat.

 

After getting dressed and seeing if he could walk, which he luckily could, he turned to Souda. “So, where is Komaeda now?”

 

“Oh yeah, that… Follow me.” Souda walked Hinata out of the recovery room and to a locked storage room with a window. “Look in here.”

 

Hinata looked in the small window and saw Komaeda sitting on a box, hands tied behind his back, and legs tied together. He just looked at the window and smiled, causing Hinata to shudder. “How can he still be okay after all this?” ‘ _Also… why does this all seem so familiar…? And why is he still not wearing pants?!_ ’

 

“Hey, Hinata-kun? How are you feeling? I’m a little tied up at the moment, but I’ll talk to you when I can!”

 

“Oh he has got to be kiddin’…” Souda looked in the window at the smiling boy.

 

“Oh, Souda-kun, could you do me a favor and wash my tools for me? I didn’t get a chance to yet and I’d hate for them to rust.”

 

Souda just walked away from the room with Hinata. “He shouldn’t be actin’ so calm about all this. There’s a good chance that you could have died from that attempted transplant cause I doubt he could get a fresh heart on such short notice without killing someone, and the only ones here who have the same blood type as you are Tsumiki and I. Last time I checked, we were both alive.” Souda soon realized how stupid it was to reiterate that he was alive. What else could he be, a zombie? “Does blood type even matter with heart transplants? The hell if I know. All that matters is that no one is dead. I intend to keep it that way.” At least that was a comforting thought. “Either way, I’ve got some stern words for Togami… He shouldn’t have turned you over to Komaeda, not with your amnesia and his dementia.” He started to march down to the hall towards Togami’s lab. “The good news in all of this is that, if Komaeda got to some anesthetic, our supply came in, so we can fix his brain up once the inspector leaves… Togami should be taking care of him right now.”

 

“Wait… What do you mean ‘taking care of him’?” This wording raised concern in Hinata.

 

“Oh, oh okay. Yeah, I should explain that…” Souda chuckled nervously. “Uh… I have to ask you… did ya really think that everything we do here really is up to standards? Like, I’m all for following the rules and all, but…”

 

“Souda….” His tone was getting increasingly annoyed.

 

“Well, we kind of HAVE to push what is morally and legally allowed in order to achieve our goals. We have literally the strictest inspector, and he nearly failed our inspection, which is why we wanted to get that whole lobotomy thing taken care of yesterday. Some of us don’t exactly have official medical licenses, and yeah… So, Togami, with all the best intentions, entered his final project as a biochemist last year, a memory altering serum that he mixes up so that our inspector passes us each inspection. Still, its applications outside of the school were limited, so he only received second place to me, but yeah.”

 

Hinata’s forehead met his hand in one swift motion. “So you are telling me that a lot of you really are just mad scientist teenagers that have limited practice operating on each other and have next to no certification for what you are doing? And I’m part of all this?”

 

“Not exactly, I mean, most of us have earned a license to practice medicine by our first year… but the assistants don’t get certification, so the fact that I let you cut off my hand last year wasn’t the most kosher thing… Hehehehe…”

 

Hinata raised his hand slightly like he was going to say something, only to quickly drop it. “I have no words right now… let’s just get to Togami.”

 

“Yeah, I’ve pretty much had it up to here with people trying to experiment on others without con-” Souda pushed open the swinging doors to Togami’s biochemistry lab, only to see Togami with his mask up, a scalpel in his hand, and an unconscious inspector passed out on his lab table. “What the ever lovin’ hell is going on here?!”

 

“Haven’t either of you heard of knocking?” Togami’s eye twitched slightly as he attempted to hide the scalpel behind his back.

 

“You have swinging doors to your lab, and they weren’t even locked or anythin’. But that’s not the point… what the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

 

“Simple. This is the 3rd time I’ve done this procedure, and I’ve gotten bored with it. Nothing exciting ever happens around here. It’s the same crap day in and day out unless we get a volunteer test subject to visit. I figured that if I was gonna replace his memories, I might as well take advantage of it to try out some new chemicals and see if they would negatively affect the human body in any way.”

 

“Okay, I don’t know how the hell you ever figured that this was even remotely a good idea. First, let inspector Ishimaru off the lab table and just replace his memories already. Now, I was going to come in here and yell at you because Komaeda tried to cut open Hinata and replace his heart, but I have to ask now, did you tell Komaeda to do that?” It was a reasonable request, but the implications were heavy with it.

 

“What are you talking about?” Togami seemed shocked.

 

“After you dropped Hinata-chan off at Komaeda’s lab, he tried to remove Hinata’s heart!”

 

“Well, I didn’t have anything to do with that, I can say that with my honor as a member of the Togami family. I honestly just said he should just see if he could trigger one of Hinata’s lost memories. Now, if that is all you were here for, I will finish up my work with the inspector here, and you can leave me alone. I don’t need help from you…”

 

“... Alright…” Souda turned his back and started walking with Hinata, hesitant to leave Togami alone. “Let’s go, Hina-”

 

“HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

 

“The hell was that, Togami?” Souda turned around and gave Togami a suspicious look.

 

Hinata was actually fairly good at pinpointing the location of the disembodied screaming, and was the first to remember Togami’s back room. “I seem to recall you not wanting me in there earlier. Any particular reason why?” Eyes narrowed, Hinata started walking towards it.

 

“No, of course not. But I would prefer if you respected my privacy and didn’t intrude upon areas I mark as ‘do not enter’, so please leave.”

 

There was no way in hell that Hinata was going to leave now. Considering the pain he went through earlier, he wanted to make sure no one else was going through anything like that. Upon pushing open the door, he was met with a sight shockingly similar to what he’d just gone through.

 

Souda ran up to the door after pushing Togami down so he wouldn’t get there before him. “LEON!”

 

It was indeed his close friend sprawled out on the table in the extremely bloody, unmonitored room. The walls were practically dyed brown, and standing near him was Fukawa, or at least they thought it was Fukawa.

 

“‘Ey, Byakuya-sama! Ya said you’d keep these schmucks out so I could keep working peacefully!”

 

Hinata’s brain had reached maximum capacity at this point. He had no idea what was going on, or any way to rationalize any of this. He was close to screaming in frustration, but he didn’t want to exhaust his voice. He just watched as Souda dashed into the room to “save” Leon only to get a pair of rather sharp scissors pushed up against his neck.

 

Togami rushed in shortly after dusting himself off and checking his glasses. “Okay, I can explain.”

 

“Yes, please do before Souda’s windpipe gets cut open.”

 

“Alright, well, using as much knowledge I had, I managed to pinpoint that my assistant had Dissociative Identity Disorder. Upon the sight of blood, she would faint and switch out with the Genocider here.” With a nod of Togami’s head, Syou let go of Souda and he got to work on stitching up Leon.

 

Hinata had to interrupt at this point. “Wait… you’re referring to the infamous serial killer ‘Genocider Syou?’ And they’ve just been staying here, helping you out with your scientific research, cutting open an innocent teenager, and you’re okay with this? You know that this is like… aiding and abetting a criminal, also being an accomplice to a murderer?”

 

“Well, admittedly, I like having her around. Things get done a lot faster when your assistant isn’t just fainting every time a needle pierces skin. All she asked was for someone to work with on her own time…”

 

“Well, I don’t like that you caught one of my friends to cut open like this. How are they ever going to trust us for real procedures if this keeps happenin’?”

 

It was then that Hinata realized something. “Souda… where’s Tanaka?”

 

“Oh, him? When I went to see Togami, he decided to go back to his lab for now, but I’m sure he’ll be-”

 

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

 

“Okay? I guess maybe he’s not okay.” said Souda nervously. “Let’s hurry then, I have no idea what could be happening to him, but it can’t be good…”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank my beta readers Jayy (PaleInc), okasamersie, and Mooks (datkarkatass) for all beta reading this chapter :3

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to give special thanks to Tumblr user PaleInc for beta-reading this for me. It really helped. :3


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